Tours
Upcoming Tours
Thirst for Freedom: From NH's Slave Trade to Its Civil Rights Movement
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Nur Shoop
Colonial Portsmouth newspapers testify to local involvement in the slave trade, runaway freedom-seekers, abolitionists, and anti-abolitionist activities, followed by conflicting opinions of the Civil War. In the 20th century, the legacy of that early history was reflected locally in newspaper reports of the struggles to end de facto segregation in housing, employment, and public places. This tour includes many of those historic landmarks from the early seventeenth through the twentieth centuries.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Ain't She A Woman: Let Me Tell You Her Story
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Lionel Loveless
Can you imagine the hustle and bustle of a prosperous colonial seaport town? This interactive tour invites you to discover the world of past and present Portsmouth from the perspective of African-born and next generations of African American women. Learn how, in spite of enslavement and the burdens of racial discrimination, these pioneers of change fought for justice and freedom, defied a sitting United States president, and educated generations of children. Hear the stories and celebrate the resilience, versatility, and courage revealed in our shared seacoast his/herstory!
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Prince Whipple and the 1779 Petition
Sankofa Tour Guide: Stanford Cross
Experience a unique journey into history on our Living History Tour. Get an intimate understanding of Prince Whipple, the brave men who stood with him in signing the Petition of Freedom, his personal insights into the debates for Independence, and his service in the NH militia. The tour takes you to significant sites of his life after freedom, including his family home and the First Ladies African Charitable School established by his wife Dinah. Discover the lesser-known side of Prince Whipple as an influential event manager.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Lives Bound Together: The Washingtons & Ona Marie Judge in NH
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Sonya Arroyo
During President George Washington’s final months in office, a woman named Ona Marie Judge was enslaved in the household of the First Family. In the spring of 1775, she sought her freedom, escaping from the Washingtons' executive mansion in Philadelphia with the aid of that city’s free Black community and making her way to Portsmouth. On this tour, you will hear the true story of Judge’s quest for freedom and the President’s relentless efforts to get her back. See the waterfront where she lands and visit the properties of some of America’s most famous families: the Langdons, Whipples, and Lears, whose stories were also bound to hers.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Not a Slave, yet not Free: Harriet E. Wilson and the Abolition Movement
Harriet E. Wilson was the first known African American to publish a novel on the North American continent. Born a free person of color in New Hampshire, Wilson was orphaned when young and bound as an indentured servant until the age of 18. Follow a trail to places where the child-servant went as she was growing up and where she struggled to make a living. Learn about Harriet's only son, George, who died in a poor house while she was trying to survive as a widow.
Wilson's book was published in 1859 with her original title, a device to engage the reader in her fictionized autobiography, Our Nig; or Sketches from the Life of a Free Black, in a Two-Story White House, North, Showing that Slavery's Shadows Fall Even There. She wrote only one novel. Wilson went on to be known as a Spiritualist and was paid on the public lecture circuit to talk about her life.
Meeting Place: The Oval in Milford, NH.
Thirst for Freedom: From NH's Slave Trade to Its Civil Rights Movement
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Nur Shoop
Colonial Portsmouth newspapers testify to local involvement in the slave trade, runaway freedom-seekers, abolitionists, and anti-abolitionist activities, followed by conflicting opinions of the Civil War. In the 20th century, the legacy of that early history was reflected locally in newspaper reports of the struggles to end de facto segregation in housing, employment, and public places. This tour includes many of those historic landmarks from the early seventeenth through the twentieth centuries.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
A Walking Tour of Exeter’s Racial History
Walk in the footsteps of Exeter’s earlier generations and explore the racial history of the town -- the conflicts, concessions, and changes that have taken place over time and continue to shape its future. Learn about Exeter's legacy related to Atlantic slave trading and hear stories about African Americans who helped shape the town's history.
Learning Exeter’s history can contribute to a richer community dialogue about its present and future.
Meeting Place: Exeter Town Hall | 10 Front St, Exeter.
Kittery's Black Yankees
This tour describes how Africans and their descendants, residents of a northern Atlantic port town, used their resilience and cultural traditions of mutual aid to establish one of Maine's earliest African American communities. You will hear stories about enslaved and freed people living here from colonial times and "Black Yankees" of the modern era, a history often ignored and rarely identified with the heritage of New England.
Meeting Place: Parking Lot of Lil's Cafe | 7 Wallingford Square, Downtown Kittery, ME.
Lives Bound Together: The Washingtons & Ona Marie Judge in NH
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Sonya Arroyo
During President George Washington’s final months in office, a woman named Ona Marie Judge was enslaved in the household of the First Family. In the spring of 1775, she sought her freedom, escaping from the Washingtons' executive mansion in Philadelphia with the aid of that city’s free Black community and making her way to Portsmouth. On this tour, you will hear the true story of Judge’s quest for freedom and the President’s relentless efforts to get her back. See the waterfront where she lands and visit the properties of some of America’s most famous families: the Langdons, Whipples, and Lears, whose stories were also bound to hers.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
A Walking Tour of Exeter’s Racial History
Walk in the footsteps of Exeter’s earlier generations and explore the racial history of the town -- the conflicts, concessions, and changes that have taken place over time and continue to shape its future. Learn about Exeter's legacy related to Atlantic slave trading and hear stories about African Americans who helped shape the town's history.
Learning Exeter’s history can contribute to a richer community dialogue about its present and future.
Meeting Place: Exeter Town Hall | 10 Front St, Exeter.
Prince Whipple and the 1779 Petition
Sankofa Tour Guide: Stanford Cross
Experience a unique journey into history on our Living History Tour. Get an intimate understanding of Prince Whipple, the brave men who stood with him in signing the Petition of Freedom, his personal insights into the debates for Independence, and his service in the NH militia. The tour takes you to significant sites of his life after freedom, including his family home and the First Ladies African Charitable School established by his wife Dinah. Discover the lesser-known side of Prince Whipple as an influential event manager.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
A Walking Tour of Exeter’s Racial History
Walk in the footsteps of Exeter’s earlier generations and explore the racial history of the town -- the conflicts, concessions, and changes that have taken place over time and continue to shape its future. Learn about Exeter's legacy related to Atlantic slave trading and hear stories about African Americans who helped shape the town's history.
Learning Exeter’s history can contribute to a richer community dialogue about its present and future.
Meeting Place: Exeter Town Hall | 10 Front St, Exeter.
Ain't She A Woman: Let Me Tell You Her Story
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Lionel Loveless
Can you imagine the hustle and bustle of a prosperous colonial seaport town? This interactive tour invites you to discover the world of past and present Portsmouth from the perspective of African-born and next generations of African American women. Learn how, in spite of enslavement and the burdens of racial discrimination, these pioneers of change fought for justice and freedom, defied a sitting United States president, and educated generations of children. Hear the stories and celebrate the resilience, versatility, and courage revealed in our shared seacoast his/herstory!
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Lives Bound Together: The Washingtons & Ona Marie Judge in NH
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Sonya Arroyo
During President George Washington’s final months in office, a woman named Ona Marie Judge was enslaved in the household of the First Family. In the spring of 1775, she sought her freedom, escaping from the Washingtons' executive mansion in Philadelphia with the aid of that city’s free Black community and making her way to Portsmouth. On this tour, you will hear the true story of Judge’s quest for freedom and the President’s relentless efforts to get her back. See the waterfront where she lands and visit the properties of some of America’s most famous families: the Langdons, Whipples, and Lears, whose stories were also bound to hers.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Thirst for Freedom: From NH's Slave Trade to Its Civil Rights Movement
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Nur Shoop
Colonial Portsmouth newspapers testify to local involvement in the slave trade, runaway freedom-seekers, abolitionists, and anti-abolitionist activities, followed by conflicting opinions of the Civil War. In the 20th century, the legacy of that early history was reflected locally in newspaper reports of the struggles to end de facto segregation in housing, employment, and public places. This tour includes many of those historic landmarks from the early seventeenth through the twentieth centuries.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Prince Whipple and the 1779 Petition
Sankofa Tour Guide: Stanford Cross
Experience a unique journey into history on our Living History Tour. Get an intimate understanding of Prince Whipple, the brave men who stood with him in signing the Petition of Freedom, his personal insights into the debates for Independence, and his service in the NH militia. The tour takes you to significant sites of his life after freedom, including his family home and the First Ladies African Charitable School established by his wife Dinah. Discover the lesser-known side of Prince Whipple as an influential event manager.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Not a Slave, yet not Free: Harriet E. Wilson and the Abolition Movement
Harriet E. Wilson was the first known African American to publish a novel on the North American continent. Born a free person of color in New Hampshire, Wilson was orphaned when young and bound as an indentured servant until the age of 18. Follow a trail to places where the child-servant went as she was growing up and where she struggled to make a living. Learn about Harriet's only son, George, who died in a poor house while she was trying to survive as a widow.
Wilson's book was published in 1859 with her original title, a device to engage the reader in her fictionized autobiography, Our Nig; or Sketches from the Life of a Free Black, in a Two-Story White House, North, Showing that Slavery's Shadows Fall Even There. She wrote only one novel. Wilson went on to be known as a Spiritualist and was paid on the public lecture circuit to talk about her life.
Meeting Place: The Oval in Milford, NH.
Ain't She A Woman: Let Me Tell You Her Story
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Lionel Loveless
Can you imagine the hustle and bustle of a prosperous colonial seaport town? This interactive tour invites you to discover the world of past and present Portsmouth from the perspective of African-born and next generations of African American women. Learn how, in spite of enslavement and the burdens of racial discrimination, these pioneers of change fought for justice and freedom, defied a sitting United States president, and educated generations of children. Hear the stories and celebrate the resilience, versatility, and courage revealed in our shared seacoast his/herstory!
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Kittery's Black Yankees
This tour describes how Africans and their descendants, residents of a northern Atlantic port town, used their resilience and cultural traditions of mutual aid to establish one of Maine's earliest African American communities. You will hear stories about enslaved and freed people living here from colonial times and "Black Yankees" of the modern era, a history often ignored and rarely identified with the heritage of New England.
Meeting Place: Parking Lot of Lil's Cafe | 7 Wallingford Square, Downtown Kittery, ME.
Not a Slave, yet not Free: Harriet E. Wilson and the Abolition Movement
Harriet E. Wilson was the first known African American to publish a novel on the North American continent. Born a free person of color in New Hampshire, Wilson was orphaned when young and bound as an indentured servant until the age of 18. Follow a trail to places where the child-servant went as she was growing up and where she struggled to make a living. Learn about Harriet's only son, George, who died in a poor house while she was trying to survive as a widow.
Wilson's book was published in 1859 with her original title, a device to engage the reader in her fictionized autobiography, Our Nig; or Sketches from the Life of a Free Black, in a Two-Story White House, North, Showing that Slavery's Shadows Fall Even There. She wrote only one novel. Wilson went on to be known as a Spiritualist and was paid on the public lecture circuit to talk about her life.
Meeting Place: The Oval in Milford, NH.
Ain't She A Woman: Let Me Tell You Her Story
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Lionel Loveless
Can you imagine the hustle and bustle of a prosperous colonial seaport town? This interactive tour invites you to discover the world of past and present Portsmouth from the perspective of African-born and next generations of African American women. Learn how, in spite of enslavement and the burdens of racial discrimination, these pioneers of change fought for justice and freedom, defied a sitting United States president, and educated generations of children. Hear the stories and celebrate the resilience, versatility, and courage revealed in our shared seacoast his/herstory!
Thirst for Freedom: From NH's Slave Trade to Its Civil Rights Movement
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Nur Shoop
Colonial Portsmouth newspapers testify to local involvement in the slave trade, runaway freedom-seekers, abolitionists, and anti-abolitionist activities, followed by conflicting opinions of the Civil War. In the 20th century, the legacy of that early history was reflected locally in newspaper reports of the struggles to end de facto segregation in housing, employment, and public places. This tour includes many of those historic landmarks from the early seventeenth through the twentieth centuries.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Lives Bound Together: The Washingtons & Ona Marie Judge in NH
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Sonya Arroyo
During President George Washington’s final months in office, a woman named Ona Marie Judge was enslaved in the household of the First Family. In the spring of 1775, she sought her freedom, escaping from the Washingtons' executive mansion in Philadelphia with the aid of that city’s free Black community and making her way to Portsmouth. On this tour, you will hear the true story of Judge’s quest for freedom and the President’s relentless efforts to get her back. See the waterfront where she lands and visit the properties of some of America’s most famous families: the Langdons, Whipples, and Lears, whose stories were also bound to hers.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Ona Judge Day Tour
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Sonya Arroyo
In 2022, New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu signed a bill that declared May 21 st to be Ona Judge Day. The declaration honors that day in 1796 on which Ona Maria Judge Staines left the residence of President George and Martha Washington in Philadelphia, boarded a ship to Portsmouth, and lived a long and dignified life in New Hampshire, free, but a fugitive.
On this special Ona Judge Day Tour, you will hear the true story of a young woman's quest for freedom. See the waterfront where Ona landed and visit the Portsmouth properties of some of America's most famous families - the Langdons, Warners, and Lears - whose stories are also bound to her incredible journey.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
On Saturday Night We Were Husband and Wife: The Black Family
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Dan Comly
Despite many obstacles, Black men and women — both enslaved and free — met, nurtured relationships, married, and built families. Learn about obstacles and how they were overcome. True stories about these families describe how Portsmouth’s community of African people and their descendants claimed their place as Americans.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
A Small New Hampshire Town Remembers Its Black History
Sankofa Tour Guides: Rebecca Courser & Lynn Clark
We will meet at the Soldier’s Monument in Warner and carpool to the village of Waterloo where we will explore its Black history. The tour will include the village school, train station, Camp Newton (a summer camp for children whose parents were overseas missionaries), and homes that Black people worked in, owned, or rented. Employers Nehemiah Ordway, one time governor of the Dakota territories and U.S. Senator William E. Chandler summered in Waterloo and ties the little village into national politics. Bring a folding chair, water, and wear closed-toed walking shoes.
Meeting Place: Warner Town Hall | 5 East Main Street, Warner, NH
This tour will be from 1 PM to 3 PM. Please wear sturdy walking shoes.
Ain't She A Woman: Let Me Tell You Her Story
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Valerie Fagin
Can you imagine the hustle and bustle of a prosperous colonial seaport town? This interactive tour invites you to discover the world of past and present Portsmouth from the perspective of African-born and next generations of African American women. Learn how, in spite of enslavement and the burdens of racial discrimination, these pioneers of change fought for justice and freedom, defied a sitting United States president, and educated generations of children. Hear the stories and celebrate the resilience, versatility, and courage revealed in our shared seacoast his/herstory!
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
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Past Tours
Ain't She A Woman: Let Me Tell You Her Story
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Valerie Fagin
Can you imagine the hustle and bustle of a prosperous colonial seaport town? This interactive tour invites you to discover the world of past and present Portsmouth from the perspective of African-born and next generations of African American women. Learn how, in spite of enslavement and the burdens of racial discrimination, these pioneers of change fought for justice and freedom, defied a sitting United States president, and educated generations of children. Hear the stories and celebrate the resilience, versatility, and courage revealed in our shared seacoast his/herstory!
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
A Small New Hampshire Town Remembers Its Black History
Sankofa Tour Guides: Rebecca Courser & Lynn Clark
We will meet at the Soldier’s Monument in Warner and carpool to the village of Waterloo where we will explore its Black history. The tour will include the village school, train station, Camp Newton (a summer camp for children whose parents were overseas missionaries), and homes that Black people worked in, owned, or rented. Employers Nehemiah Ordway, one time governor of the Dakota territories and U.S. Senator William E. Chandler summered in Waterloo and ties the little village into national politics. Bring a folding chair, water, and wear closed-toed walking shoes.
Meeting Place: Warner Town Hall | 5 East Main Street, Warner, NH
This tour will be from 1 PM to 3 PM. Please wear sturdy walking shoes.
On Saturday Night We Were Husband and Wife: The Black Family
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Dan Comly
Despite many obstacles, Black men and women — both enslaved and free — met, nurtured relationships, married, and built families. Learn about obstacles and how they were overcome. True stories about these families describe how Portsmouth’s community of African people and their descendants claimed their place as Americans.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Ona Judge Day Tour
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Sonya Arroyo
In 2022, New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu signed a bill that declared May 21 st to be Ona Judge Day. The declaration honors that day in 1796 on which Ona Maria Judge Staines left the residence of President George and Martha Washington in Philadelphia, boarded a ship to Portsmouth, and lived a long and dignified life in New Hampshire, free, but a fugitive.
On this special Ona Judge Day Tour, you will hear the true story of a young woman's quest for freedom. See the waterfront where Ona landed and visit the Portsmouth properties of some of America's most famous families - the Langdons, Warners, and Lears - whose stories are also bound to her incredible journey.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Lives Bound Together: The Washingtons & Ona Marie Judge in NH
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Sonya Arroyo
During President George Washington’s final months in office, a woman named Ona Marie Judge was enslaved in the household of the First Family. In the spring of 1775, she sought her freedom, escaping from the Washingtons' executive mansion in Philadelphia with the aid of that city’s free Black community and making her way to Portsmouth. On this tour, you will hear the true story of Judge’s quest for freedom and the President’s relentless efforts to get her back. See the waterfront where she lands and visit the properties of some of America’s most famous families: the Langdons, Whipples, and Lears, whose stories were also bound to hers.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Thirst for Freedom: From NH's Slave Trade to Its Civil Rights Movement
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Nur Shoop
Colonial Portsmouth newspapers testify to local involvement in the slave trade, runaway freedom-seekers, abolitionists, and anti-abolitionist activities, followed by conflicting opinions of the Civil War. In the 20th century, the legacy of that early history was reflected locally in newspaper reports of the struggles to end de facto segregation in housing, employment, and public places. This tour includes many of those historic landmarks from the early seventeenth through the twentieth centuries.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Ain't She A Woman: Let Me Tell You Her Story
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Lionel Loveless
Can you imagine the hustle and bustle of a prosperous colonial seaport town? This interactive tour invites you to discover the world of past and present Portsmouth from the perspective of African-born and next generations of African American women. Learn how, in spite of enslavement and the burdens of racial discrimination, these pioneers of change fought for justice and freedom, defied a sitting United States president, and educated generations of children. Hear the stories and celebrate the resilience, versatility, and courage revealed in our shared seacoast his/herstory!
Not a Slave, yet not Free: Harriet E. Wilson and the Abolition Movement
Harriet E. Wilson was the first known African American to publish a novel on the North American continent. Born a free person of color in New Hampshire, Wilson was orphaned when young and bound as an indentured servant until the age of 18. Follow a trail to places where the child-servant went as she was growing up and where she struggled to make a living. Learn about Harriet's only son, George, who died in a poor house while she was trying to survive as a widow.
Wilson's book was published in 1859 with her original title, a device to engage the reader in her fictionized autobiography, Our Nig; or Sketches from the Life of a Free Black, in a Two-Story White House, North, Showing that Slavery's Shadows Fall Even There. She wrote only one novel. Wilson went on to be known as a Spiritualist and was paid on the public lecture circuit to talk about her life.
Meeting Place: The Oval in Milford, NH.
Kittery's Black Yankees
This tour describes how Africans and their descendants, residents of a northern Atlantic port town, used their resilience and cultural traditions of mutual aid to establish one of Maine's earliest African American communities. You will hear stories about enslaved and freed people living here from colonial times and "Black Yankees" of the modern era, a history often ignored and rarely identified with the heritage of New England.
Meeting Place: Parking Lot of Lil's Cafe | 7 Wallingford Square, Downtown Kittery, ME.
Ain't She A Woman: Let Me Tell You Her Story
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Lionel Loveless
Can you imagine the hustle and bustle of a prosperous colonial seaport town? This interactive tour invites you to discover the world of past and present Portsmouth from the perspective of African-born and next generations of African American women. Learn how, in spite of enslavement and the burdens of racial discrimination, these pioneers of change fought for justice and freedom, defied a sitting United States president, and educated generations of children. Hear the stories and celebrate the resilience, versatility, and courage revealed in our shared seacoast his/herstory!
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Not a Slave, yet not Free: Harriet E. Wilson and the Abolition Movement
Harriet E. Wilson was the first known African American to publish a novel on the North American continent. Born a free person of color in New Hampshire, Wilson was orphaned when young and bound as an indentured servant until the age of 18. Follow a trail to places where the child-servant went as she was growing up and where she struggled to make a living. Learn about Harriet's only son, George, who died in a poor house while she was trying to survive as a widow.
Wilson's book was published in 1859 with her original title, a device to engage the reader in her fictionized autobiography, Our Nig; or Sketches from the Life of a Free Black, in a Two-Story White House, North, Showing that Slavery's Shadows Fall Even There. She wrote only one novel. Wilson went on to be known as a Spiritualist and was paid on the public lecture circuit to talk about her life.
Meeting Place: The Oval in Milford, NH.
Prince Whipple and the 1779 Petition
Sankofa Tour Guide: Stanford Cross
Experience a unique journey into history on our Living History Tour. Get an intimate understanding of Prince Whipple, the brave men who stood with him in signing the Petition of Freedom, his personal insights into the debates for Independence, and his service in the NH militia. The tour takes you to significant sites of his life after freedom, including his family home and the First Ladies African Charitable School established by his wife Dinah. Discover the lesser-known side of Prince Whipple as an influential event manager.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Thirst for Freedom: From NH's Slave Trade to Its Civil Rights Movement
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Nur Shoop
Colonial Portsmouth newspapers testify to local involvement in the slave trade, runaway freedom-seekers, abolitionists, and anti-abolitionist activities, followed by conflicting opinions of the Civil War. In the 20th century, the legacy of that early history was reflected locally in newspaper reports of the struggles to end de facto segregation in housing, employment, and public places. This tour includes many of those historic landmarks from the early seventeenth through the twentieth centuries.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Lives Bound Together: The Washingtons & Ona Marie Judge in NH
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Sonya Arroyo
During President George Washington’s final months in office, a woman named Ona Marie Judge was enslaved in the household of the First Family. In the spring of 1775, she sought her freedom, escaping from the Washingtons' executive mansion in Philadelphia with the aid of that city’s free Black community and making her way to Portsmouth. On this tour, you will hear the true story of Judge’s quest for freedom and the President’s relentless efforts to get her back. See the waterfront where she lands and visit the properties of some of America’s most famous families: the Langdons, Whipples, and Lears, whose stories were also bound to hers.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Ain't She A Woman: Let Me Tell You Her Story
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Lionel Loveless
Can you imagine the hustle and bustle of a prosperous colonial seaport town? This interactive tour invites you to discover the world of past and present Portsmouth from the perspective of African-born and next generations of African American women. Learn how, in spite of enslavement and the burdens of racial discrimination, these pioneers of change fought for justice and freedom, defied a sitting United States president, and educated generations of children. Hear the stories and celebrate the resilience, versatility, and courage revealed in our shared seacoast his/herstory!
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
A Walking Tour of Exeter’s Racial History
Walk in the footsteps of Exeter’s earlier generations and explore the racial history of the town -- the conflicts, concessions, and changes that have taken place over time and continue to shape its future. Learn about Exeter's legacy related to Atlantic slave trading and hear stories about African Americans who helped shape the town's history.
Learning Exeter’s history can contribute to a richer community dialogue about its present and future.
Meeting Place: Exeter Town Hall | 10 Front St, Exeter.
Prince Whipple and the 1779 Petition
Sankofa Tour Guide: Stanford Cross
Experience a unique journey into history on our Living History Tour. Get an intimate understanding of Prince Whipple, the brave men who stood with him in signing the Petition of Freedom, his personal insights into the debates for Independence, and his service in the NH militia. The tour takes you to significant sites of his life after freedom, including his family home and the First Ladies African Charitable School established by his wife Dinah. Discover the lesser-known side of Prince Whipple as an influential event manager.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
A Walking Tour of Exeter’s Racial History
Walk in the footsteps of Exeter’s earlier generations and explore the racial history of the town -- the conflicts, concessions, and changes that have taken place over time and continue to shape its future. Learn about Exeter's legacy related to Atlantic slave trading and hear stories about African Americans who helped shape the town's history.
Learning Exeter’s history can contribute to a richer community dialogue about its present and future.
Meeting Place: Exeter Town Hall | 10 Front St, Exeter.
Lives Bound Together: The Washingtons & Ona Marie Judge in NH
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Sonya Arroyo
During President George Washington’s final months in office, a woman named Ona Marie Judge was enslaved in the household of the First Family. In the spring of 1775, she sought her freedom, escaping from the Washingtons' executive mansion in Philadelphia with the aid of that city’s free Black community and making her way to Portsmouth. On this tour, you will hear the true story of Judge’s quest for freedom and the President’s relentless efforts to get her back. See the waterfront where she lands and visit the properties of some of America’s most famous families: the Langdons, Whipples, and Lears, whose stories were also bound to hers.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Kittery's Black Yankees
This tour describes how Africans and their descendants, residents of a northern Atlantic port town, used their resilience and cultural traditions of mutual aid to establish one of Maine's earliest African American communities. You will hear stories about enslaved and freed people living here from colonial times and "Black Yankees" of the modern era, a history often ignored and rarely identified with the heritage of New England.
Meeting Place: Parking Lot of Lil's Cafe | 7 Wallingford Square, Downtown Kittery, ME.
A Walking Tour of Exeter’s Racial History
Walk in the footsteps of Exeter’s earlier generations and explore the racial history of the town -- the conflicts, concessions, and changes that have taken place over time and continue to shape its future. Learn about Exeter's legacy related to Atlantic slave trading and hear stories about African Americans who helped shape the town's history.
Learning Exeter’s history can contribute to a richer community dialogue about its present and future.
Meeting Place: Exeter Town Hall | 10 Front St, Exeter.
Thirst for Freedom: From NH's Slave Trade to Its Civil Rights Movement
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Nur Shoop
Colonial Portsmouth newspapers testify to local involvement in the slave trade, runaway freedom-seekers, abolitionists, and anti-abolitionist activities, followed by conflicting opinions of the Civil War. In the 20th century, the legacy of that early history was reflected locally in newspaper reports of the struggles to end de facto segregation in housing, employment, and public places. This tour includes many of those historic landmarks from the early seventeenth through the twentieth centuries.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Not a Slave, yet not Free: Harriet E. Wilson and the Abolition Movement
Harriet E. Wilson was the first known African American to publish a novel on the North American continent. Born a free person of color in New Hampshire, Wilson was orphaned when young and bound as an indentured servant until the age of 18. Follow a trail to places where the child-servant went as she was growing up and where she struggled to make a living. Learn about Harriet's only son, George, who died in a poor house while she was trying to survive as a widow.
Wilson's book was published in 1859 with her original title, a device to engage the reader in her fictionized autobiography, Our Nig; or Sketches from the Life of a Free Black, in a Two-Story White House, North, Showing that Slavery's Shadows Fall Even There. She wrote only one novel. Wilson went on to be known as a Spiritualist and was paid on the public lecture circuit to talk about her life.
Meeting Place: The Oval in Milford, NH.
Lives Bound Together: The Washingtons & Ona Marie Judge in NH
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Sonya Arroyo
During President George Washington’s final months in office, a woman named Ona Marie Judge was enslaved in the household of the First Family. In the spring of 1775, she sought her freedom, escaping from the Washingtons' executive mansion in Philadelphia with the aid of that city’s free Black community and making her way to Portsmouth. On this tour, you will hear the true story of Judge’s quest for freedom and the President’s relentless efforts to get her back. See the waterfront where she lands and visit the properties of some of America’s most famous families: the Langdons, Whipples, and Lears, whose stories were also bound to hers.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Prince Whipple and the 1779 Petition
Sankofa Tour Guide: Stanford Cross
Experience a unique journey into history on our Living History Tour. Get an intimate understanding of Prince Whipple, the brave men who stood with him in signing the Petition of Freedom, his personal insights into the debates for Independence, and his service in the NH militia. The tour takes you to significant sites of his life after freedom, including his family home and the First Ladies African Charitable School established by his wife Dinah. Discover the lesser-known side of Prince Whipple as an influential event manager.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Ain't She A Woman: Let Me Tell You Her Story
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Lionel Loveless
Can you imagine the hustle and bustle of a prosperous colonial seaport town? This interactive tour invites you to discover the world of past and present Portsmouth from the perspective of African-born and next generations of African American women. Learn how, in spite of enslavement and the burdens of racial discrimination, these pioneers of change fought for justice and freedom, defied a sitting United States president, and educated generations of children. Hear the stories and celebrate the resilience, versatility, and courage revealed in our shared seacoast his/herstory!
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
Thirst for Freedom: From NH's Slave Trade to Its Civil Rights Movement
Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide: Nur Shoop
Colonial Portsmouth newspapers testify to local involvement in the slave trade, runaway freedom-seekers, abolitionists, and anti-abolitionist activities, followed by conflicting opinions of the Civil War. In the 20th century, the legacy of that early history was reflected locally in newspaper reports of the struggles to end de facto segregation in housing, employment, and public places. This tour includes many of those historic landmarks from the early seventeenth through the twentieth centuries.
Meeting Place: BHTNH Headquarters | 222 Court Street, Portsmouth, NH.
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Explore Programs
Connect with history and community through events and programs that inspire, educate, and celebrate the rich heritage of New Hampshire’s Black culture.
Juneteenth Celebration
Join us for Juneteenth, the oldest known nationally celebrated event commemorating the end of slavery in the United States.
Black New England Conference
Come back each year to engage with a different topic of African American culture, history, and experience.
Elinor Williams Hooker Tea Talks Series
Engage with a series of panel discussions relating to New Hampshire’s Black history and African American culture.
Frederick Douglass Statewide Readings
Deepen your understanding of the 4th of July with a reading and discussion of a speech by abolitionist Frederick Douglass.
The Black Matter is Life Poetry Series
Examine the work of Black poets and explore the rich tradition and innovation found in African American poetry.
Spring Symposium
Deep dive into a topic of African American history through interactive dialogue with local experts.
Preserve Black History in New Hampshire